Bodies of elite climber and cameraman ‘frozen in time’ in glacier for 16yrs

The bodies of a renowned mountain climber and expedition cameraman who were buried in a Himalayan avalanche 16 years ago have been found. The widow of Alex Lowe said that two climbers attempting to ascend the 26,291-foot Shishapangma in Tibet discovered the remains of two people partially melting out of a glacier. The climbers described the clothing and backpacks seen on the bodies to Conrad Anker, who was climbing with Lowe and cameraman David Bridges at the time of the October 1999 avalanche and survived. Anker concluded that the two were Bridges and Lowe.

Alex and David vanished, were captured and frozen in time. Sixteen years of life has been lived and now they are found. We are thankful.

Widow Jenni Lowe-Anker

Jenni Lowe married Anker, her husband’s friend and fellow elite climber, in 2001. They live in Bozeman, Montana, and run the Alex Lowe Charitable Foundation together. Anker said the discovery has brought closure and relief to him. He told Outside magazine that although he hasn’t seen photos of the remains, he’s convinced they are those of Lowe and Bridges. Lowe, Anker, Bridges and several others were scouting out routes at about 19,000 feet when they saw a slab of snow break free 6,000 feet above them. Lowe was regarded as the world’s greatest mountain climber when he was swept to his death at age 40. He was known jokingly as “Lungs With Legs” for his incredible strength and stamina.

They were close to each other. Blue and red North Face backpacks. Yellow Koflach boots. It was all that gear from that time period. They were pretty much the only two climbers who were there.

Conrad Anker

Shishapangma